THE Ilkley Business Awards took place for the third year running at The King's Hall and Winter Garden Ilkley on Friday evening, honouring excellence in the town.

A panel of independent judges gathered to pour over the 60 entries to decide who the winners should be.

There were: Professional Services Business of the Year, Bringing Sparkle Back; Independent Retailer of the Year, Love Brownies; Food and Drink Business of the Year, Christchurch Ilkley Café; Health and Beauty Business of the Year, The Valley Clinic Physiotherapy;

Leisure and Tourism Business of the Year, Clip 'n Climb Ilkley Ltd; Business Personality of the Year, Liz Blizzard – The Valley Clinic Physiotherapy; Large Business of the Year, Virtual College; Small/Medium Business of the Year, Erica Berry Flowers; New Business of the Year, Alpine Lifestyle Boutique Limited; Micro Business of the Year, Helen Taylor Landscape and Garden Design Ltd; Employee of the Year, Sarah Hainsworth - Bistro Saigon; Apprentice of the Year, Patrick - Pizza Express, Ilkley; Best Customer Service of the Year, The Little Tea House; the Overall Winner Clip 'n Climb Ilkley Ltd.

Judges comments on Clip 'n Climb included: “A business which succeeds with a strong and dedicated team”; “Working with the special support groups in the community” and “An asset to the town of Ilkley”.

The awards attracted the attention of many local businesses who supported the awards by sponsoring categories and contributing to the judging process. These include headline sponsor The Clevedon at Ben Rhydding, the Ilkley Business Forum, The Parish Council, Wheatley Arms, Craven College, Poppy Red, U Dentistry, Box Tree restaurant, Denton Hall, Ilkley BNI, Erica Berry, The Alternative Board, LCF Law, RDC Solicitors, Sarah Siddons Financial Planning, The Gazette and Angus Roberts.

Emma Louise Fawcitt, general manager of headline sponsor, The Clevedon at Ben Rhydding said: "The Clevedon at Ben Rhydding restaurant is really passionate about customer service and their staff, so the Ilkley Business Awards felt really relevant to get involved with as they recognise the staff that work for the businesses in LS29 and there was a special award for customer service. We took a table on Friday night and took some of our staff, a great night was had by all and we will certainly be getting involved again next year."

The awards have been driven by Ilkley Business Forum members and supported by the Ilkley Parish Council and were created to celebrate the achievements of businesses in LS29.